I'm trying to get my groove back after this crazy week. Last week I was jamming in the studio and now I have hit a wall of exhaustion. Yesterday and today I have been totally wiped out and then to add insult to injury I had a migraine last night and then another one this afternoon. Yuk!

I tried to get a little work done today and managed a couple hours, but my eyes were so heavy I finally had to just lay down. I haven't felt this tired since I was 20 and had a bad couple of years with chronic fatigue. Maybe after the weekend I'll be feeling better. I hope! I have so much work to do. I slept 10 hours last night you'd think that would be enough. I always get so worried when I start to get this sleepy thinking that I'll never feel awake again. Very annoying. But it has been a crazy week so I guess I'll try to cut myself some slack.

Here's a PoppetTM sketch commission that I finished and sent off. Aren't they sweet!?

Oh and don't forget to play along in the new podcast! Submissions are due Saturday night. Here's how to play. We hope you'll give it a shot, right now we only have one player and we need more than that!

Hi ClaudineI too suffer from migranes, they started in my early teens.I work fulltime as an artist just like you and I have discovered that I typically get migranes after a period of too much stress. Maybe your body is asking you to take some time off? You seem to be a hard worker and naturally anxious (like so many creative people) and maybe you just need more playtime and some R&R?Best wishes :)

Hi Claudine, I love your art. I take Midrin at the start of a migraine. It is an older drug, but it makes mine go away. I use to have to go to bed, etc. But now I take two at the start of a headache and it goes away. Hope you find something that will work for you. Hannah

Hi Claudine--just a quick comment to let you know it will pass....I feel this as well when I'm in the midst of a migraine/fatique lull. I know this feeling well! you are so productive though! you travel so much and do so much! now it's break and recharge your batteries time! p.s. love your art, I'm in your group and love your books. am learning alot! plus saw the hgtv shoe and loved it. very informative an good piece.

It will pass, I have to belive that as I have had a migrane all week too. I just keep smiling and praying for to pass. Take lots of naps as you have been very active with work and travel. You need some down time.

Who wouldn't be exhausted after spending the day with an energetic 5 year old! Maria must have the strength of an army! FYI - the way I learned to boil eggs is to bring them to a full boil, cover the pot with a lid & turn off the heat. Set the timer for 15 minutes while the eggs stay the steamy water and then time is up they're hard boiled. Hope you feel better!

Hi Claudine-You could probably use more raw foods! I suffered with chronic fatigue too. It's definitely no fun- I lost friends over it as my fatigue was also partnered with depression and sometimes migraines that lasted days. I just couldn't pass your post without letting you know that I feel AT LEAST 95% better since eating more raw foods. Check out Alissa Cohen and David Wolfe. www.alissacohen.com and www.davidwolfe.com and www.welikeitraw.comI think you'll be surprised about how lovely you feel after just a week eating all raw fruit, veggies, nuts & seeds. :) You never know unless you try, right?

Also, I love your work! Hey, maybe you're just pushing yourself too hard- like you said. Sorry for the unsolicited raw food suggestion. I hope it's not taken the wrong way. I just wanted to share how wonderfully it worked for me. I don't think I ever felt so alive and creative!

Yes, pushing your body to do what your mind wants vs. allowing your body and mind to work together.....it's an easy pattern we all fall into. In our society we are not taught to respect the body and it's promptings. A desire for a nap, a desire for quiet time, a desire or sudden lack of desire for certain foods are all the body's way of telling us what it needs to keep us going. We have to respect our bodies. If what we want to accomplish causes us to take ill in some form, it's not because our body's are getting in the way of progress. It's because our assumptions of what progress is are getting in the way of reality. LOL Stop pushing yourself so hard, Claudine! Chronic Fatigue can return and then we'd all suffer, because being run down you would not be able to do as many wonderful workshops or Poppets or podcasts or any of the fabulous stuff that touches people so much. Slow down, love yourself more, and take it at a slower pace. You'll actually get more work done that way because your stress levels won't be as high and you won't have as many stops and starts. Slower pace is equal to steady uninterrupted pace which is equal to getting more done, as well as enjoying the experience more. You don't have to prove yourself all over again with each new day. You are valid just for breathing and being the creative person you are. Good things will still come to you if you let yourself relax and breath.

Well, now that I've rudely preached I'll get off my soapbox (Please don't take offense! It's meant with respect and well wishes :o) )

Oh, Ella! So true! Ella's suggestion of fresh fruits and veggies is actually sound advice. I recommend people do fresh juicing initially since raw foods at first, if you're not used to them, are hard on the digestive system. But, I do a lot of veggie juicing and it's amazing how much it improves inflammatory conditions. It cleans the garbage out of the system brought on by too much refined flours and sugars and additives/preservatives in foods. Cleans everything up good and you feel so much more clarity and physical comfort and are so much more mobile. I love fresh raw foods. When I get monthly cramping issues (ahem), I don't reach for Advil. I have ginger tea and a big leafy green salad with lots of olive oil and garlic and lemon juice, some shredded carrot, a little cheese and crumbled nuts, etc. All those things have powerful anti-inflammatory properties, and I feel tons better afterwards. If I'm really on the ball each month, I don't get any discomfort at all. But, the more refined flours and sugars I have, and the less raw veggies and fruits and essential oils, the more prone I am to aches and pains, headaches, muscle stiffness, clouded thinking, etc.

Just read AP story in the New York Times that says researchers report that chronic fatigue syndrom appears to result from something in people's genetic makeup that reduces their ability to deal with physical and psychological stress. Researchers said the findings could help lead to better means of diagnosing and treating chronic fatigue syndrome and predicting who is likely to develop the disorder. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta estimates that more than 1 million Americans have the condition, with women suffering at four times the rate of men.

Oh, I believe it. Women's hormones play a large role in that. Testy little things, they are.

I don't follow any CFS protocols prescribed by Western Medicine. I eat organic, meditate and exercise regularly. Initially, when I first got sick, I couldn't get out of bed. I dragged myself to an accupunctuist for several sessions and within 4 weeks was not only no longer bed-ridden, but had lost a lot of the chemical sensitivities I'd developed when I got sick, and suddenly had lots of energy and only needed 6-7 hours of sleep per night. It's amazing what a little natural living and respect for the body will do for you. The body just asks us for a little room to do its thing, and when we give it that room, it goes right to healing itself nicely. Now, as a result, when I go into my studio to work, I feel so much more connected to my work, so much more joy for it.....I am actually grateful for having gotten sick because I've learned so much and enjoy my life so much more than I used to. :o)